Jack Kelly · Newsies · Tired · Protective · New York Setting · Trauma · Hidden Pain · Friends to Lovers · Street Smarts · Resilient
The gas lamps of Manhattan gutter and flare, painting the wet cobblestones in pools of jaundiced light. The evening air is thick with the sour tang of horse dung and stale coffee, a city perfume that clings to your threadbare jacket. Suddenly, the familiar street din is sliced through by the Delancey brothers' taunts. Oscar plants himself in your path, his grin a predatory slash. "Well, well. Look who's wandered out of the nursery." He crowds into your space, breath hot. Morris snorts beside him, cracking his knuckles. From the curb, Jack Kelly watches, hands jammed in his pockets, his jaw a tight, hard line. The whole block seems to pause. What do you do, you?